CLEVELAND, Ohio -- It was a day to smile and take pictures, a day when Progressive Field was a bit more than a dream.

The Tribe introduced four of their top draft picks to the media before Tuesday's game with Angels. Many brought their parents along.

It's a day they'll never forget. It's also a day that at some point in their careers will seem so far away.

That's because this is baseball, where the Tribe's top pick (Bradley Zimmer) signed for $1.9 million. In a few days, he'll be playing for Mahoning Valley in the New York-Penn Rookie League.

But after this day when the top picks tour Progressive Field and shake hands with the likes of Nick Swisher, it's on to a minor league bus.

At Mahoning Valley, Zimmer's teammate will be Julian Merryweather, a fifth-rounder who signed for $20,000. Another teammate is Steven Patterson, who signed for $10,000. He was a 10th-round pick.

The reason their bonuses are so low is they are college seniors -- no leverage about returning to school for another year. It's sign or stay home.

Some players on the Scrappers roster will have received bonuses in the $5,000 range. Odds are no more than five players in Mahoning Valley this summer will eventually play in the Majors.

Yes, top picks such as Justus Sheffield (31st overall pick) will receive extra attention from the coaches and more time to prove themselves. The lefty signed by the Tribe for $1.6 million was the Gatorade High School Player of the Year. He allowed three earned runs in 61 innings, striking out 131 thanks to a 95 mph fastball and a wipe-out slider.

But Sheffield is headed to the Arizona Rookie League.

"He'll play during the day, mostly in front of moms, dads, family and friends," said Tribe Scouting Director Brad Grant. "We usually send our high school kids to Arizona, our college players to Mahoning Valley."

And then, they wait.

The average college player needs 3-to-4 years to make the Majors, the typical high school player needs five years.

A year ago, it was Clint Frazier's turn to take batting practice before a Tribe after turning pro. The 2013 first-rounder is now hitting .248 at Class A Lake County.PD

PATIENCE REQUIRED

A year ago, it was Clint Frazier at Progressive Field. He met the media, took pictures in a Tribe cap. He even took pregame batting practice.

For one day, he felt like a first-round draft choice of a Major League team.

Then he was sent to Goodyear, to play in the Arizona Rookie League, despite being the 2013 Gatorade High School Player of the Year.

This season, the 19-year-old outfielder is at Class A Lake County. It doesn't matter that he was the No. 5 pick in the 2013 draft. Or as Grant said, "He hit a lot of 420-foot homers in high school."

At Lake County, Frazier is batting .248 (.691 OPS) with four homers and 19 RBI in 222 at bats in the Class A Midwest League.

The baseball draft followed by the minor league system humbles most players. Consider how Johnny Manziel or any NFL first-rounder is treated. Or the entitlement that goes along with being one of the top picks in the NBA.

You won't find any recent Major League draft pick talking about "my brand," as Manziel, Kyrie Irving and others in football and basketball do not long after turning pro.

They're just trying to get to the big leagues, and it takes climbing, clawing and keeping calm.

It's Arizona to Mahoning Valley to Lake County to Carolina to Akron to Columbus.

That's six steps covering four levels of minor league baseball -- from rookie ball to Class AAA.

COLLEGE PLAYERS

Top Tribe pick Bradley Zimmer signed for $1.9 million bonus. His next stop if Mahoning Valley in the New York-Penn League.Thomas Ondrey / The Plain Dealer

Top pick Bradley Zimmer is a 6-foot-5, 205-pound outfielder who batted .368 with seven homers and 31 RBI for the University of San Francisco.

He seems a bit like Tyler Naquin (Texas A&M) , the Tribe's first rounder in 2012 (No. 15 pick overall). Both were considered excellent college hitters, neither had impressive power.

In his first two pro seasons (Class A and Class AA), Naquin was a .269 hitter (.749 OPS) with 10 homers in 665 at bats.

"But this season, it has really come together for him," said Grant. "This is the player we scouted."

At Class AA Akron, Naquin is hitting .325 (.864 OPS) with four homers, 26 RBI and 14 steals while playing center and batting leadoff for the RubberDucks. In the last 17 games, he's batting .431.

Naquin is figuring it out at the age of 23. Keep in mind that he's four years older than Frazier, last season's top Tribe pick.

"Sometimes, a guy does move fast," said Grant. "Look at Kyle Crockett."

At this point a year ago, Crockett was trying on his Tribe cap as he was the team's fourth-round pick from the University of Virginia. Now, he's in the Tribe's bullpen. That's almost an immediate return on the $463,000 bonus.

Grant said the two players he drafted closest to big league ready were Jason Kipnis (2nd round, 2009) and Francisco Lindor (1st round, 2011). Kipnis is with the Tribe, Lindor is hitting .275 (.808 OPS) with four homers and 36 RBI at Akron. He is expected to be at short for the Tribe next season.

"But those guys are the exception," he said.

For most players, it's "here's your bonus, hope to see you in Cleveland in four years."

GOOD REVIEWS

ESPN's baseball draft expert Keith Law loves what the Tribe did in this draft:

"I'm not sure any team did better than Cleveland did over the draft's first 72 hours. The Indians were fortunate that Zimmer fell into their laps with the 21st overall pick, and they now have the advanced outfield prospect their system needed. Justus Sheffield's feel for pitching and low-90s fastball should see him move relatively quickly for a prep arm.

"Mike Papi was one of the best pure bats in the entire class. Add in talented preps like Grant Hockin and Bobby Bradley -- plus one of the best defensive outfielders in the draft in Greg Allen, and Cleveland has added tremendous depth to its system. None of these names are locks to be named to a top-100 prospect ranking next winter, but if they perform well over the summer, the Indians will have picked up a handful of players who will rank in their top 10."

But really, who knows?

The 61st pick in the draft, Hockin met the media Tuesday. The right-hander was 9-3 with a 1.49 ERA and 99 strikeouts compared to 17 walks in 80 innings for Damien (Ca.) High. He was headed for UCLA before the Tribe enticed him to turn pro with a $1.1 million bonus.

Consider that the top two pitching prospects drafted -- Sheffield and Hockin -- also were exceptional high school hitters. Sheffield batted .405, Hockin (the grandson of Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew) was a .379 hitter.

Hockin said he "was born ready" for this day, when he turned pro.

Now, he and all the rest will find out how hard and long the road to Cleveland is for virtually every prospect.

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